The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1887-06-28
STATE TOPICS.
The Millions OF Toothplcks to be
Made In Maine.
Goose ouIIIs Driven Out Of the Mar
ket by Wood.
Washington County Shackers and a
New Theory Concerning Judge
Rounds.

pick business In Maine?" The questiOner
was Mr.. j. Q. Bridgman, who represents the
National Tooth Pick Association. "That
seems to be pretty big name for small bus
iness, suppose you think" he continued.
But you viii be surprised when tell you
that our association have contracted 70
enough toothplcks to be made in Maine the
coming year to load a train'o Of fifty cars
with nothing but toothpicks. We shall take
out Of Maine before next June five thousand
million toothpicks. A pretty fair sized
woodlot you see win be slit up to 20 into the
mouths and vest pockets Of millions OF
Americans. Maine furnishes the larger por-
tion Of all the toothpicks used In the eoun-
try. Our association controls the trade. IL
is something like the Standard OH Trust.
the Cotton Seed Oil Trust. and the lately
formed Rubber Trust. 1t regulates the price
ana output OF toothpieks as the big trusts
regulate the prices and output Of oil or rub
ber goods. We have not adopted the name
Tooth Pick Trust yet, however. We have a
mill at Belmont, N. Y, Harbor Springs.
Mich, and FOn du Lac, Wis. Besides these
all our mills are In Maine; one at Strong,
one at Pennington, one at Canton, and two
at Dixield. There Is small mill at Me-
chanie Falls, also, but it has not Joined our
associatisn. In Massachusetts,, also, there
Is one small mill not in the association. So
you see Maine is the great centre Of the In
dustry Of tooth pick making
This Industry has been growing in Maine
for twenty-five years. Mr.. Biidgman saws
that this year the Maine firms In his assoeia-
tlon have contracted to supply twenty-one
thousand cases. Besides this the mill at he
chanie Falls win produce about five cases a
day. When the industry was In its infancy
the wholesale price of the picks was sls a
case. BY the box there are 100 boxes in a
case) they cost 25 cents. Now the wholesale
price is between SO and S4 a case, and by
the box they cost from to 10 cents. I'M
proved machinery has had much to do with
this reduction Of price.
Few people have ever thought that there
could be any such thing as style about a
tooth pick. But there can be. Birch and
poplar are the woods used, and the picks
rank In quality according to the wood and
the form Of the pick. The best pick Of all
IS the perfumed pick. The wood is soaked
In oil Of cinnamon and oil Of sassafras, and
when the tooth pick comes out 1t Is a dainty
smelling implement, fit for -damsels and
dudes. One Of these picks Is very ss..seasafs
TO chew, and the flavoring process may In
the end demoralize society by encouraging
that most ill-mannered performance-the
chewing OF tooth pick on the street or In
company.
A well known gentleman Of this State who
has lately been down in Washington county
has given novel theory Of the apparently
mexplicable hostility 10 Police Judge
Rounds Of Calais This gentleman divides
the people Of Washington county into two
classes, Shackers, or those who favor or
wink at breaches Of the game law, and
anti-Shaekers, or those who want the laws
rigidly enforced. When the Shackers, who
are now in prison for burning the buildings
OF the game wardens in Wesley, were tried,
Judge Rounds was prominent In their prose-
eution. 1t is said that then man from
Calais threatened Rounds, saying: ''When
you come up for re-appointment as iudge of
the police court, win fix you for this"
And when Governor Bodwell made the nom
nation, II Is said that that man was among
the very active enemies Of Mr.. Rounds.
speaking OF the enforcement Of the game
laws, the gentleman said that no one had
yet, been selected to take the place
OF the murdered warden, the one
armed soldier, HILL This, however, Il not
because everyone down that way Is AFRAID
There are. lots Of good men, he says, who
are ready to take the job, II they can have
proper pay. The pay Is where the trouble
comes. The Shackers have been pretty
thoroughly subdued, by the sentences OF
Fenlason and Day TO State Prison for burn
lngs In wesley, and the apprehension Of
Graves with his return to Maine and life-
sentence at Th0mastOn. The threats that
no warden can walk these woods and live Is
not heard now.
The Shaeker fight has undoubtedly got in
to politics good deal in parts Of Washington
county. In the town OF Wesley, for in
stance, the hot bed Of Shackerism, the party
lines have been considerably changed, this
same gentleman declares. The mean Repub-
lcans with Shacker proeliyitles have gone
over to the Democrats, while the best Demo-
Gratis, who want the law enforced, have
come over to the Republicans. The Demo-
crats have always sneered at the game laws
down that way, and at the last election
John =. Talbot expressly declared in the
convention that nominated him that there
were laws on the statute books that he
should not be In favor Of enforcing were he
public officer.
Several Of the citizens Of Wesley have be-
come tired of the long fight and moved away.
As 1t Is, the law and order party and the
Shacker party are about equally divided.
Mean while poaehing is not so extensive, per-
haps, as over in the Hancock portions Of the
game region.